Social sciences and humanities
Subject: BUSINESS MANAGEMENT (A.A. 2023/2024)
degree course in ECONOMICS AND FINANCE
| Course year | 1 |
|---|---|
| CFU | 6 |
| Teaching units |
Unit Economia e gestione delle imprese
Business Studies (lesson)
|
| Exam type | written |
| Evaluation | final vote |
| Teaching language | Italiano |
Teachers
Overview
Students would acquire the basic underpinnings for studying businesses and their competitive environment (industry structure analysis, business definition, competitive dynamics, basic issues on strategic management and business models). Objectives and activities of the company's departments will be analysed: sales and marketing functions (strategic orientations, competitive advantage, introduction to the marketing mix, service construct and levers,…), operations (production systems types, logistics, inventory management), and essential organisational issues (firm’s structure, organisational forms,…).
Admission requirements
Given the introductory nature of the course, no specific requirements are needed.
Course contents
Course outline:
- THE FIRM AND ITS COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT; FIRM'S RESOURCES AND CAPABILITIES (1 CFU)
- STRATEGY AND THE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE; ORGANISATIONAL FORMS AND MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS (1 CFU)
- COMPETITIVE STRATEGIES & DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES; THE BUSINESS MODEL (2 CFU)
- FIRM MAIN FUNCTIONS: OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT; MARKETING; SERVICE MANAGEMENT (2 CFU)
The course develops on 42 hours of teaching, within which the teaching of the fundamental contents of the discipline will be integrated and enriched making reference to business and sector cases and other teaching material aimed at stimulating students participation in the learning process.
Teaching methods
Teaching takes place face to face and is delivered in Italian. The course is based on lectures complemented by a continous reference to case-studies, as well as simple simulations that are designed to allow students to apply concepts and models to a "real-world" business setting. The course has its own moodle page https://moodle.unimore.it/course/view.php?id=4255/ where the teacher up-loads slides of the lectures, teaching materials and exercises and examples of the exam's questions.
Assessment methods
The test is written. The duration is 40 minutes. The exam includes 22 multiple-choice closed questions and 2 themed open questions (with a maximum limit of lines to be used) in the form of a mini-case. Multiple choice questions have four answer options each, only one of which is correct. The correct answer is assigned with1 point, the answer not given or incorrect is instead 0. These questions are aimed at evaluating: - knowledge and understanding skills; - the application of knowledge and understanding; - autonomy of judgment. Up to 5 points will be awarded to the mini-cases, respectively, by evaluating: - the application of knowledge and understanding; - autonomy of judgment; - the ability to elaborate links between concepts. The grade reported in the exam is given by the sum of the points obtained with the closed and open questions (a score equal to or greater than 31 results in obtaining the grade: 30 cum laude). The results will be communicated no later than two weeks after the written test; the publication will take place through Esse3.
Learning outcomes
Knowledge and understanding.
- understand both the operation management of a company and the environmental context in which it operates. Through lectures and discussions of concrete business examples the student learns:
- the contents of the concepts of business and competitive environment, with specific reference to the sector structure, the business definition, the competitive dynamics and the basic features of business strategies;
- the differences and characteristics between business and corporate strategies;
- the criteria and models with which to structure a business from an organizational point of view
- the basic characteristics of the production, logistics, sales and marketing functions.
Applied knowledge and understanding
Real business and industry examples allow the student to apply the concepts learned to:
- analyze competitive sectors and systems
- identify the most appropriate competitive strategies
- experiment with an integrated reading of company functions and their use for competitive purposes.
Autonomy of judgment.
- formulate and formalize judgments on the different conditions of attractiveness of a sector and to evaluate the most appropriate strategies and functional policies in view of a sustainable development.
Communication skills.
- Clearly communicatig the knowledge and understanding skills acquired.
- Using correctly and appropriately the business language, concepts and models acquired to effectively discuss the possible managerial solutions adopted and adoptable by companies.
Learning ability
- Applying the knowledge and understanding skills learned to other topics related to business management, competitive analysis, the use of operating levers to other areas of management not covered in the course, but connected to this subject of teaching
- Independently updating the knowledge and understanding skills relating to business management and the use of the strategy in light of the evolutions underway and the changes that will occur in the macro-environment.
Readings
Gianluca Marchi –Bernardo Balboni Elisa Martinelli –, Economia e Gestione delle Imprese – A.A. 2018/19, McGraw-Hill Education - Create
Capitoli integrativi che costituiscono parte integrante del programma d'esame:
cap. 15 DEL TESTO: Kotler P., Keller K., Marketing Management, Pearson Prentice Hall, Milano, 13^ edizione italiana, 2007
- CAP. 5 (5.1, 5.2, 5.3) DEL TESTO: Grant R.M., Analisi strategica per le decisioni aziendali, Mulino, Bologna, 2005
Durante il corso verranno inoltre messi a disposizione (caricati sulla piattaforma Moodle) i testi di esercizi con relative soluzioni e il cui procedimento costituisce parte
integrante del programma di esame.